Atelier Muir offices and Galerie DESIGN

The peculiarities of Frelighsburg's delightful valley geography determined its odd street patterns,
and are partly responsible for the town's relative preservation. What better location for the offices
of a Townships architectural practice than the charming environment of Main Street? What better
architectural scale for a practice concerned with landscape and heritage, than a centenarian wood-frame house?

The original ground-floor space of this vintage residence tells a story as it adapts to new uses.
The 19th-century ceiling of hand-hewn beams, thick joists and wide planks is left intact and exposed
with all its defects, revealing the development of technology in the town itself. Small holes penetrate
the joists where wires were passed through porcelain insulators after electricity was brought to the
town in 1910. Black pipes indicate a still functional hot water heating retrofit. Now black track
lighting is added to the mix as the space morphs into a design gallery.

At eye level, the white walls of the gallery hide a magnetic paint layer that allows paper-based
exhibits to be snapped to the display surfaces with magnets. Yet another invisible system is at
play between these walls--high-speed wireless Internet access will connect the laptops of resident
and visiting designers. All in all, a useful reminder that some 19th-century models of planning and
architecture have just the right level of scale, functionality and charm for successful adaptive
re-use in the 21st-century.

Galerie DESIGN
is a new exhibit space dedicated to exploring the design process. Founded
by architect Eden Muir,
Galerie DESIGN
celebrates creative thinking, innovative planning
and graphical problem-solving, whether recorded on paper or digitally.

The gallery is located in a converted 19th-century residence at the heart of Frelighsburg, an
Eastern Townships village which hosts the popular Festiv'Art event (festivart.org) every Labour Day weekend.
The Atelier Muir architecture office and studio are located above the gallery on the second floor.

Upstairs from Galerie DESIGN are the offices of Atelier Muir. These
three photographs (click to expand) document the
renovation of one part of the design studio: At left, the original
space included a small bathroom, laundry and kitchen/living space, all in very poor condition.
Note how low the ceiling is, and how the mountain view is ignored.
In the middle, a view of the renovation process, including the walls and cathedral ceiling
being insulated with sprayed urethene. At right, the finished product with exposed beams,
track lighting, hardwood floors, and a
great view of The Pinnacle.